For example, such a gasbag or a motor vehicle equipped therewith is known from DE 10 2005 041 274 A1. This conventional gasbag is tightly folded together under the rear edge of a front opening hood of the motor vehicle in an idle state, and when inflated, it first lifts up the front opening hood, to then expand through a gap created by lifting the hood, over a lower edge of a windshield adjoining the front opening hood and over the A-column that laterally encases the windshield. When the head of a pedestrian strikes the rear edge of the front opening hood, the hood is to yield at least at the point of impact, and the gasbag made flexible by the compressibility of the gas contained therein is to decelerate the penetrating motion of the head and, if at all possible, prevent it from breaking through into non-deformable fixtures in the engine compartment. Since the front opening hood disperses the force of impact over a large surface, a slight excess pressure in the gasbag is sufficient to build up the counterforce required to decelerate the impact.
However, if the head hits one of the end regions of the gasbag covering the A-columns, there is no structure to disperse the force of impact. Therefore, the deceleration experienced by the head given the same excess pressure in the gasbag is less when it strikes the end regions than when it hits the hood, and the danger of the head breaking through all the way to the A-column already exists at a relatively low speed of impact.
Made known by EP 1 072 479 B1 was a gasbag for installation in a motor vehicle steering wheel, which is comprised of cloth panels varying in permeability, so as to achieve a desired overall permeability for the gasbag.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide improved gasbags for a pedestrian protection system that is able to effectively protect the head of a pedestrian, regardless of whether the latter strikes the front opening hood or parts of the motor vehicle body adjoining the latter. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will be apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.